Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) says the ten year targets set by the Government last night to reduce child poverty are both appropriate and realistic. They are also consistent with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal of halving child poverty by 2030. “Ten years may seem like a long time but the reality is that poverty […]

Treasury’s Budget Policy Statement (BPS) 2018 indicates some real progress in terms of social wellbeing, but there are still outstanding issues that need to be urgently considered ahead of the upcoming Budget, says Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG). While Government has committed significant additional spending to reverse the deliberate reductions and neglect of Working for […]

Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) commends the Government for its new Child Poverty Reduction Bill. In particular, its comprehensive multi-tiered poverty lines will provide a broader picture of the depth of child poverty than any single measure could. Six supplementary measures will accompany the four primary measures of child poverty. CPAG especially welcomes the 40% […]

Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) says that Treasury’s error in overestimatingthe numbers of children lifted out of poverty by both National and Labour’s families packages provides an opportunity for the Government to take bold action. Pre-election, both National and Labour promised to reduce the number of children living under the 50% before housing costs (BHC) […]

Now is the time of the year when we send in requests to that mysterious red-garbed being at the north pole for ‘goodies’ of one sort or another. This is my belated wish-list of gifts. But not gifts for myself. These are gifts for the whole of New Zealand…

Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) welcomes the Government’s Families Package announced today, which provides a significant boost to income support where it’s desperately needed. “This is a long overdue response to the disastrous child poverty experienced since the 1990s,” says Associate Professor Susan St John, CPAG’s economics spokesperson. “The Prime Minister is to be applauded […]

Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) says that successful ethical lending schemes such as Nga Tangata Microfinance (NTM) that are designed to empower families in hardship and reduce the effect of debt, should be a model for adoption nationwide. A new report by NTM shows the not-for-profit organisation’s success in helping hundreds of financially vulnerable people […]

Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) says the new Child Poverty Monitor 2017 report shows some improvements in rates and number of children in material hardship, but the figures should be viewed with a degree of caution. The new report, derived from data collected mid-2016 from income over the previous 12 months, shows that the numbers […]

More than 40,000 children are hospitalised each year with preventable illnesses that can be attributed to poverty and poor living conditions, and vastly improving legislation around the quality and safety of rental homes is imperative if the wellbeing of children is to improve, says Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG). Passing of the Healthy Homes Guarantee […]

Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) welcomes the new report “Getting it Right” by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCROC) Monitoring Group. The group, convened by the Office of Children’s Commissioner, reports on the concluding observations from the 2016 examination of New Zealand by the UN Committee, on our commitment to […]

A New Zealand where all children can flourish: Briefing to incoming ministers Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) says that with a new minister for Child Poverty Reduction, there is hope for measurable improvement in the lives of affected children in Aotearoa-New Zealand. It is highly significant that Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has taken this new […]

Borrowed money should not count as income that can reduce benefit entitlements, saysChild Poverty Action Group (CPAG). In a case being heard in the High Court, the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) is arguing that a sole mother who took out loans to pay for her home repairs and to support her children – because […]

A formal agreement between Labour and Greens may spell long sought after improvements to Working for Families (WFF), says Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG). The agreement document says that an “overhaul” of the welfare system must “ensure access to entitlements, remove excessive sanctions and review Working For Families so that everyone has a standard of […]

Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) says that urgently removing Sections 176, 177, 178 from the Social Security Legislation Rewrite Bill and extending the In-Work Tax Credit portion of Working for Families to all children irrespective of their parents’ hours of work are critical moves an incoming Government must make to ensure the wellbeing of all […]

Bold plans needed to tackle child poverty, not vague promises Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) says bold plans are needed, not vague promises that the current Government will reduce child poverty numbers by 100,000 some years in the future. National’s 2018 Family Incomes Package will help some very low-income larger families. But while 50,000 children […]

Today Every Child Counts and the Child Poverty Action Group are hosting a housing forum, asking political parties what they will do to improve access to healthy, affordable housing. The housing crisis is reaching devastating proportions in New Zealand, and while Government has increased its expenditure on emergency housing grants and transitional housing spaces, this […]